Charity vs. Philanthropy: How Are They Different?

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When the Giving Compass team recently learned that the term “charity” has been searched on Google six times more than “philanthropy” since 2004, it initiated a dialogue about semantics and donor journeys.

Although Giving Compass guides donors toward high-impact philanthropy practices, we recognize there are many different ways to do good. The conversation that occurred in our little microcosm got us thinking: How do others define charity and philanthropy and what does it mean to each of us?

If you are looking for more articles and resources for Philanthropy, take a look at these Giving Compass selections related to impact giving and Philanthropy.

Giving Compass' Take:
• The Surdna Foundation explains how it's building a more inclusive and diverse economy by supporting entrepreneurs of color through impact investing.
• The foundation says it refined its focus and centered on racial justice. Have you evaluated your giving strategy to include a racial justice approach?
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As other contributors to this series have pointed out, the US economy is deeply inequitable. The median household wealth for black and Latinx families is 12 times less than white households.
The Surdna Foundation, one of the oldest family foundations in the United States, is committed to addressing these inequities and building a more inclusive economy for future generations. Our mission is to foster communities guided by principles of social justice, and distinguished by healthy environments, inclusive economies, and thriving cultures. We work to fulfill this mission through a variety of approaches.
In 2018, we reasserted our commitment to social justice by refining our focus and centering on racial justice—a shift based on our belief that the most effective way to build a more just society is to address historical and structural racial inequities.
As part of this shift, we are targeting three outcomes through all of the foundation’s efforts, including impact investing, grantmaking, and other initiatives:
Building wealth among communities of color,
Building accountability by supporting the capacity of community-based organizations to hold policymakers and institutions accountable to the goal of equitable investments and benefits in communities of color,
Increasing democratic participation by strengthening the power and expertise of often overlooked communities of color to shape decisions that impact their lives.

Charity vs. Philanthropy: Origins and Meaning

Charity and philanthropy are sometimes used interchangeably, but there are noticeable differences.

Charity is a natural, emotional impulse to an immediate situation and giving usually occurs in the short-term. Charity can take the form of monetary donations or volunteering.

Philanthropy addresses the root cause of social issues and requires a more strategic, long-term approach. In addition to giving money or volunteering, some philanthropists participate in advocacy work.

Disaster relief is an example of where charity and philanthropy both play a role. When we see a tragedy in the news or via social media, many of us are inclined to provide aid for basic necessities during an emergency. For example, Google searches for “charity” and correlated keywords reached an all-time high during the period surrounding Hurricane Katrina in 2005 (the 2004 Sri Lanka tsunami came in second for charity searches). In both cases, the number of searches increased roughly five-fold during peak times.

On the other hand, philanthropy looks at the full disaster relief life cycle, from prevention, to preparedness to recovery. Donors may focus on certain populations, such as the elderly or the poor, as part of their strategy or work directly with stakeholders to improve systems.

Regardless of the issue area, the two terms — and practices — share one main thing in common: They’re all about spreading the love.

The original meaning of charity — “Christian love of one’s fellow,” is rooted in Late Old English while philanthropy, or “the love of humanity,” originated in Greek. When “charity” entered the English lexicon by way of Old French’s “charite,” the meaning evolved to what we are familiar with today: Giving help or money to those in need. Meanwhile, the practice of modern philanthropy is often credited to titans of industry like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller.

Dictionaries and history books are a great start, but what better way to understand modern-day charity and philanthropy than with a data dive into Google Trends. Here’s what we learned:

While charity is a popular search term nationwide, the term philanthropy is most popular in Washington, D.C., followed distantly by northeast strongholds New York and Massachusetts — perhaps because many philanthropic organizations are headquartered in these areas.

From Charity to Philanthropy (or Somewhere in Between)

Those who are charitable give always, even when they have little, but when they have more and seek to up their game they start to connect with philanthropy.

There’s also a place for both, whether you consider yourself a philanthropist or not. Each of us has a choice of where we want to make the most impact, including the ratio of charity and philanthropy we want to engage in.

How do you view charity and philanthropy? What form of giving is more empowering? For whom?

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Looking for a way to get involved?

If you are looking for opportunities to learn and connect with others interested in the topic of Disaster Relief, take a look at these events, galas, conferences and volunteering opportunities aggregated by Giving Compass.